Is the current generation of politicians simply going to repeat the narrow-mindedness of the past and bequeath the sectarian, backward-looking mess to the next generations?

Like many taxpayers, I despair at the recent calls for a referendum on Irish unity.

We have seen the mess that referenda with their simplistic yes/no answers create.

Yes, some people may want a united Ireland. Most thinking people would ask, "What does the population of the Republic want? Is it prepared to financially prop up Northern Ireland?"

The Irish Language Act has me baffled. Irish culture, language and music is valuable.

We have seen the vast expenditure in the Republic to promote the use of the Irish language which is not regarded as a huge success.

So is this Irish language drive mostly a political statement? So can we not solve this roadblock?

The message to the party leaderships is, get a life for us all. Find solutions to some very difficult and sensitive problems and then tackle the ordinary problems of running a properly functioning province.

To solve these for our children's futures, we are going to have to ask ourselves if we are prepared to sacrifice our own raw feelings, or are we going to let our sores fester?